President Milanović Tells Members of “Gromovi” 2nd Guards Brigade: You are successors to a glorious army that won the war
The President of the Republic and Commander in Chief of the Croatian Armed Forces Zoran Milanović attended today the 31st anniversary ceremony of the formation of the 2nd Guards Brigade “Gromovi” [Thunders] at which berets were handed out to members of the 2nd Mechanized Battalion “Gromovi.”
After the members of the 2nd Mechanized Battalion “Gromovi” were presented with berets and after taking the oath, President Milanović delivered an address in which he told them that they are successors to a glorious army that won the war. “The commanders of that time are still here with us. These are people who will all be in retirement in ten years’ time and they will be telling their story, the legend and the truth. These are things that must not be forgotten,” the President of the Republic underscored.
“Your predecessors first defended and then liberated the country with very limited quantities of weapons,” said President Milanović, adding that the Croatian Army did not have foreign help at the time and that Croatia was defended by its own forces, heroism, ingenuity, cunning and courage of the predecessors of the 2nd Mechanized Battalion “Gromovi” and all others throughout Croatia. “Croatia was not liberated by an international coalition. Croatia was liberated exclusively by Croatian forces relying solely on their own abilities – by Croatian sons and daughters, who joined forces with our brothers from Bosnia and Herzegovina. The siege of Sarajevo and Bosnia and Herzegovina was not lifted by American and British planes, but by the Croatian Army and Croatian brigades – not by allied bombs, but by the Croatian Army at the entrance to Banja Luka. Only then was the siege of Sarajevo lifted and negotiations on the Dayton Accords began. These are very important things. There are still many witnesses. This will not be easily forgotten,” said President Milanović.
The President of the Republic told Croatian soldiers that their task is exclusively to defend Croatia. “Everything we do, along with all the loyalty and fairness that we can, should and will display towards our allies, we do above all for Croatia’s interests. Small nations cannot fight big battles. When the big ones fight, the little ones move away and look after their own interests. We don’t have thousands of tanks, we won’t have them and we don’t need them. We must manage smartly, responsibly and cunningly what we have,” the President of the Republic concluded at the ceremony held at the “Pukovnik Predrag Matanović” Barracks in Petrinja.
The ceremony marking the formation of the 2nd Guards Brigade “Gromovi” commenced with a wreath-laying and candle-lighting in memory of the fallen Croatian defenders at the memorial to Lieutenant Colonel Predrag Matanović and his comrades. Attending the wreath-laying alongside the President of the Republic and Commander in Chief of the Croatian Armed Forces were the Chief of the General Staff of the Croatian Armed Forces Admiral Robert Hranj, Commander of the Croatian Army Lieutenant General Boris Šerić, Commander of the Croatian Army Guards Mechanized Brigade Brigadier General Dražen Ressler, Commander of the 2nd Mechanized Battalion “Gromovi” Major Vlatko Klarić, Adviser to the President of the Republic for Defence and National Security Dragan Lozančić and Special Adviser to the President of the Republic for Homeland War Veterans Marijan Mareković.
PHOTO: Office of the President of the Republic of Croatia / Ana Marija Katić